Gebe ready to settle claim for electricity meter fraud

POSTED: 02/24/14 11:44 PM

St. Maarten – A resident who was taken to court by utilities company Gebe over fraud with her electricity meter to the tune of 37,000 guilders (about $20,670) found some relief when Gebe was unable to indicate where the fraud was committed and by whom.

The resident’s attorney, Cor Merx, also did not receive an answer to his question in which year his client had committed the fraud.

The resident went to court after the utilities company had threatened to cut off her connection to the grid. During the court hearing, Gebe offered a settlement for $9,000 – less than half the amount it initially claimed from the resident.

The court hearing was postponed to give attorney Merx the opportunity to control the electricity bills and to subsequently pay the amount of the settlement.

The outcome of this case so far is remarkable, because in previous big cases Gebe won its court cases outright.